Soul Care Retreat 2016 - Ancaster

After returning from the Champions retreat, I turned around and took three of our youth leaders to Ancaster for our annual Soul Care Retreat.  

We had an uneventful drive, thankfully. 

Jeannine (left) didn't seem to happy for some reason, but Ben and Rosy are.  Whew.  

hmmm, have to give Jeannine some happy pills or something.  

Lesli, out of her comfort zone, but doing a great job of getting people settled in.  

And it didn't take long to settle in.  : )

Lots of socializing around good and junk food.  
Hey there Jeannine.  
A bit shy?  

Pastor Jack was already here. 

He came on Monday for a silent retreat. 

He was perky and glad to see us.  I think.  : ) 

Still with the face Jeannine.  Really!!!  : ) 

People kept coming in from 6 - 8 pm.  

Then we got started with worship led by Marc.  

He always does a great job.  Thanks for giving us that gift this weekend.  

Our evenings speaker was Lesli, and Hilma introduced her.  

We usually get about 30 - 40 people out. 

A good comfortable sized group.  

After listening to Lesli speak we relaxed until bed time.  

Unfortunately Rosy, Jeannine and Ben decided to play games I don't like to play.  But good for them.  

Morning time.  

The cold walk to the dining hall.  

Maria first in line.  

As usual.  :  )  

Always great fellowship time around the table.  

Morning worship led by Marc again. 

He must be going through a mid life crisis because we sang a song that I grew up with in youth group. It had different verses and starts with
Shake a hand, shake a hand next to ya.....and sing along...
Well there were other actions too, like
Hug a friend......

Scratch a back......

Touch a knee.......

Here are the lyrics. 
Marc...such a card.....

Time for speaker #2, which Syd introduced.  

Ben interacted with us on Strengthfinders 2.0
 Déjà vu  : )  

We broke into smaller groups and shared our findings together.  

Jeannine and I did this. 
I think it was a great exercise to do, and will be doing this at the beginning of our next youth ministry year to better understand the gifts of our volunteer leaders.  

Lots of great discussion.  

Ben then had us gather together in smaller groups. 
Great discussions from similar gifted people.  

Then it was time for lunch.  

Yep, food picture.  : ) 

And fellowship....

Hey there Maria....  : ) 

We had free time from 1 - 5 pm.  
You could pretty much do anything you wanted to.  
We decided to go visit Hannah, Ben's sister, for a bit at Redeemer University/College.  

Nice to see her dorm and chat with her for a time.  

Then we found the skating rink in Hamilton by the water.  
It was BUSY, and small when you can skate on the Rideau Canal. : )   

But Jeannine and Rosy decided to give skating a try.  

Here are some shots of them having fun. 

We returned back in time for dinner.  Ben first in line.  : )

The nuns are great cooks.  

A feast.  So thankful for great food.  
I do think I've gained about 10 pounds though.  Lots of great food and not much doing... more sitting.  

Before our evening session began, Jeannine pulled out her knitting.  Dual purpose.  To knit, and stay warm with the already completed part.  

Our final speaker was Matt.  
He spoke into our lives an a great way.  

After our speaker it was time to relax and play some more games.  

This time I learned two new games that I actually liked.  
Who knew : ) 

Sunday Breakfast.  

Yummy.  

We look more tired this morning.  : ) 

We ended our weekend with worship and church and communion.  

Another great weekend of rest and Soul Care.  
Always a great time together with fellow youth workers. 
Till next year. !! : )